Stars
by trekker4life
Summary: Of stress, hot chocolate, stars, and hope. Post-Stand; Pyka; one-shot.


_**Disclaimer: **_**I own no part of **_**Warehouse 13**_**.**

_**~MB~PL~MB~PL~**_

Fire. Blood. Pain. Fear. Screams. Loss.

All of that and more mingled in her nightmares tonight. After waking bolt upright for the third time, she gave up on sleep. Running a hand through her dark curls, she slipped quietly out of her bed and made her way downstairs. Crossing the living room of the B&B, she grabbed a quilt from the back of one of the couches, walked through the kitchen, and stepped out onto the back patio.

Covering herself with the quilt, she settled into one of the single-seat armchairs and prepared to spend the rest of the night stargazing.

_**~MB~PL~MB~PL~**_

He woke suddenly. He had always been a heavy sleeper, but as recent events had shown, what had always been, wasn't anymore. Unsure what woke him, he decided to sneak down to the kitchen. Maybe there was a stray cookie somewhere. Cookies always helped.

As he opened the door to the kitchen, he saw a mass of dark hair slip out the back door. _Guess I'm not the only one awake_, he mused. The idea of cookies temporarily abandoned, he reached for the tea kettle that rested in its place on the stove.

Filling the kettle and setting it back down on a lit stove burner, he reached into a nearby cabinet and pulled down two mugs. Turning to the pantry, he began to search through it, intent on finding just the right ingredients.

_**~MB~PL~MB~PL~**_

Her stargazing was interrupted suddenly by the appearance of a hand, holding a steaming mug, in front of her face. Startled, she followed the hand up the arm to its owner.

"Pete," she said, her voice quiet.

"Hey, Myks," he replied, handing her the mug before settling down in the nearby couch with his own mug. "Can't sleep?"

Taking a sip of her drink – rose tea, she noted, perfectly sweet – she nodded. "Look like I'm not the only one, though. Thank you for the tea, by the way. It's perfect." She gestured to his mug. "I'm surprised you're drinking tea, though."

He gave her half of the usual Pete-smirk. "Me? Tea? Nah, this is hot chocolate. With _loads_ of mini-marshmallows." She couldn't help but give him a small smile in return. It was nice to know that not everything had changed. With that thought, the half-formed smile faded from her face, which didn't escape his notice.

Peering at her over the rim of his mug, he asked, "Wanna talk about it?" She shrugged, looking up again at the stars.

"What is there to talk about? The fact that last month, we lost two Regents, almost lost a third; then, only a couple of weeks later, we lose three people we are so close to in a single day? Oh, and don't forget, the _Warehouse_ _blew up_!"

He could tell by the way her voice shook that this was something she needed to say, that she needed the chance to vent. The last couple of weeks had been hard on her – hard on all of them, really. She took a deep breath and looked down at her mug.

"I've been trying to be strong, trying not to breakdown. For Artie, for Claudia, for Leena," _For you_, she thought. "But...I don't think I can be that strong...not anymore."

He looked at her, saw the wetness in her eyes, and decided to take action. He sat up and set his half-empty mug on the table in front of him. "Myka," he said, "Myka, look at me." She turned to him, all red-rimmed eyes and quavering chin. "You know, you don't have to be Wonder Woman around me."

She just stared at him, as if she didn't understand what he was saying. He lifted his arms, a silent offer of comfort. She blinked, set her mug on the table beside his, and practically dove into his arms.

His arms wound around her shaking shoulders, allowing her the time she needed to release the stress, the grief, the uncertainty of the recent past that weighed so heavily on her heart and mind. After some time, the shaking slowed and the cries stopped. Sniffling slightly, she raised her head. "Thank you. I guess I needed that."

He smiled and gave her a gentle squeeze. "Anytime, Myka. And I mean it. You're...you're the strongest person I know, but even the strongest need a break, sometimes. And I just want you to know that, whenever you need that break, you can come to me, alright? Nothing you can ask will be too much. You can vent or scream; I'll spar with you – if you want; whatever will help."

She smiled, looking up at him. "I...thanks, Pete." She hesitated. "Do you...do you think that maybe...we could stay right here? Just for now?" He gave her a smile in return. "Sure, Myks."

She pulled the quilt out from around her and readjusted her position on the couch before covering both of them with the quilt. She tucked her legs up under her and laid her head on his shoulder. His arm was wrapped around her shoulder again and they both reveled in the fact that right now, in this moment, everything could wait. Right now, it was simply the two of them and that was perfectly alright.

_**~MB~PL~MB~PL~**_

The next morning, Leena walked down to find her kitchen a mess – cocoa powder and sugar covered the counter nearest the stove; the pantry looked as if a storm had passed through. She had an idea who was at fault (only one person was such a sugar addict to get up in the middle of the night for it), but before she could turn around to go holler at the overgrown boy, she caught a glimpse of an aura creeping in from the patio. The aura wasn't one she had felt before, but it seemed familiar. Whomever it belonged to, though, was _very_ content, even happy.

She crept to the back door and quietly pulled it open. Seeing the two dark heads peaking over the back of the couch, one lying on the other, she decided to forgive Pete, this time. Seeing the two agents, her friends, so at ease – something she had not seen for a very long time...it gave her hope. Things may not be the best right now – hearts were hurting and the future was uncertain at best – but they would be. And that hope, that was most precious thing they could have.

_**~MB~PL~MB~PL~**_

_**Yeah...no idea where that came from. I blame being sick and not sleeping. (Literally – I woke up in the middle of the night with this practically fully-formed.) Hope everyone liked it. No idea what they're planning for season 4, but only another 3 months til we find out! Please R&R and let me know what you think.**_

_**Trekker**_


End file.
